It's no secret that Apple has been betting big with augmented reality (AR). With the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and Apple's blue-eyed boy - the iPhone X - all set to take the technology to a whole new level, Apple will now be selling "Parker"- an AR-ready teddy bear which comes to "life" through iOS-based AR effects.
According to a report by AppleInsider, the tech-giant will be the exclusive retailer of the world's first AR-ready teddy bear which was launched by a start-up that produces children's toys called Seedling.
"Parker" is priced at $59.95, but the best part about the toy is that it does not require any electronic source such a battery or a camera or even WiFi radio for meaningful user interactions, all you need is a free-to-download AR app called "seedling" for playtime sessions.
"Parker" is designed to facilitate play pretend for kids and comes complete with a doctor's kit, a backpack and special X-ray bibs that trigger AR responses in the app. Children can pretend to be doctors and diagnose common ailments such as fever and cold with the supplied accessories, which include a wooden thermometer and a stethoscope and "cure" the teddy with a medicine bottle and spoon.
Using an iPad or iPhone running on iOS 11, kids can even make more in-depth examinations of the toy's bones and internal organs. They could also use the iPhone's "3D Touch" functionality to help it take deeper breaths and test its lung capacity.
Apart from the interactive play sessions, the in-app experience also includes informative photos and videos and several games and puzzles. What's more, every time a kid performs a successful treatment by solving a problem or puzzle, "Parker's Happiness Factor" rises, indicated by special AR effects. Sounds fun doesn't it?
